Okay! So this is the sequel to "I Won't Be Falling"
(http://jonasbrothersfan.com/Community/Forum/tabid/265/forumid/62/threadid/379298/scope/posts/Default.aspx) but it's not really all that necessary to read it before this one, honestly.
Anyway! This is to everyone who read 'Falling', and Bre, who is the main star of this! Ashley's sequel is the next one after this. =]
You Can Still Get into Trouble in the Middle of Nowhere
Chapter One
So it’s safe to say I have definitely learned to never trust old Jeeps on rocky mountain paths in the woods. Sadly, I had to figure that out the hard way. I glared at the smoking engine in front of me, kicking a tire in frustration, my arms crossed. I turned to the curly-haired boy next to me as he stared under the hood, looking rather lost. He poked at a random valve and then shook his head.
“I…am definitely not a mechanic,” Kevin sighed, running a hand through his hair with a frustrated expression. Joe poked his head out of the window from the driver’s seat, where he was unsuccessfully fiddling with the key in the ignition.
“Yeah, I got nothing,” he frowned, resting his arm on the car door.
Who would have thought that things would lead to this? The boys had been on the east coast for a few weeks for appearances and interviews, and Ashley, Bre, and I had been invited to go along with them to a radio show in New Hampshire, just for fun and a chance to catch up on the several weeks we had spent apart. It was almost the end of summer, and things were winding down at the venue, so we had no trouble taking the time off. Gina was especially supportive as well, still walking on air in her new position.
The show had gone off without a hitch, and that should have been the first omen that something was bound to go wrong. But as we decided to take a picnic lunch out to a nice clearing, we didn’t really worry about it. We rented a car from this dead-end shop, laughing over how small and cute the town was. None of us were laughing now, but at the time it was quite hilarious.
As we drove, Joe wanted to get more and more adventurous, urging Kevin on farther from the passenger’s seat where he was sitting with Ashley. If he thought we didn’t see his hand cover hers lightly, he was deluding himself. But we all played along as Kevin drove because the scenery was gorgeous, and no one was really in a rush. Crammed in the backseat between Melissa and Nick, I was just enjoying the nice breeze and sunshine through the open top of the Jeep.
None of us were really expecting the sudden lurch, or the burst of steam billowing out from under the hood. Sharing an ‘oh crap’ look, we had all scrambled out of the jeep to see what could be wrong. But considering none of us exactly had a background in mechanics, we were stuck, no one among us having the slightest idea what was wrong or how to fix it. So we were basically just standing there, clueless.
Not exactly our best moments.
Ashley made an irritated noise from her spot on the other side of the car, where she was leaning up against the passenger door with her arms crossed. She glanced up from her cell phone and made a face. “I’ve got no service. Anyone?”
I fished my cell out of my pocket, flipping it open. “Nothing,” I groaned, looking to Melissa and Nick. They both had disappointed and annoyed expressions on their faces. I couldn’t help but smirk at the fact that Nick could make even aggravated look cute.
“Nada.” Mel bit her lip. “But I may have a temporary solution…”
We all looked up at her and were surprised to see she had pulled a map out of nowhere and was studying it intently. “Yup, this bodes well for us temporarily, considering the circumstances,” she mumbled herself, turning it this way and that, squinting at the trails.
“What does that mean?” Nick queried, voicing all of our confusion as he peered over Melissa’s shoulder at the slightly crumpled paper in her hands.
She pointed at a spot on the map. “My uncle owns a little house right there. It’s only about a mile away, if I’m reading this right. I mean, I am rather directionally-challenged, but I did use to spend my summers there a lot.” She glanced around at the dirt road we were on, if you could actually call it a road. “I knew this path looked familiar.”
“Is there a phone at this house?” Joe asked, brightening.
“…No. But it is shelter,” Melissa tried to reason, glancing up at the sky.
In my annoyance at the situation we were stuck in, I hadn’t noticed the heavy, dark clouds rolling over the sky. We all fell silent as a distant clap of thunder rumbled through the mountains. I didn’t need to see Mel’s face to know that we didn’t want to be caught outside in this kind of storm.
“So where’s this cottage?” Ashley spoke up quickly.
“Follow me,”
We set off on a previously-unnoticed path, with Melissa in the lead, staring now and then at the map in front of her. I was disappointed at the car troubles, but this was an interesting side-track. The sunlight that remained before the clouds took over was streaming through the trees and dappling the grass and leaves with spots of light. I glanced to my left and saw Nick right there, only about two feet away from me. My heart immediately sped up, but I managed to will the blush from my cheeks. Despite all we had went through at the venue as a group, I could not be sure of his actual feelings. Even though Ash and Mel seemed to be rather convinced, I still wasn’t sure. I mean, who’s to say I haven’t been imagining his nervous glances and slightly pink cheeks. That could have just been my imagination going haywire and making up what I wanted to see.
I was distracted from my thoughts when my gaze locked on his chocolate brown eyes and he shot me a smile. I almost tripped over a stick, but I felt his hand reach out and steady me. I got butterflies from the contact, and smiled at him gratefully.
As we maneuvered around rocks and roots, hopping over ditches and clambering over logs, conversation started up again. “So, if this house doesn’t have a phone, we’re still stranded,” Kevin pointed out with a sigh, his hand in Mel’s as we walked.
Melissa tried to look cheerful as she looked back at him. “Well, there’s a park ranger that comes around and checks on all the houses in these few acres. He’ll have a radio,”
“Great! When will he be coming next?” Kevin beamed, speeding up his pace slightly to walk next to her. She looked a little nervous, which did not look good for us.
“Um…”
“Come on, Mel, you can tell us. When? Tomorrow?” Kevin asked kindly, squeezing her hand in reassurance. She bit her lip and winced.
“Sunday.”
Yeah, we were definitely in trouble.
